Film Facts

You hear lots of talk about farces, but it's rare to actually find one at the multiplex.

Take the recent films "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" and "Blades of Glory," for instance. Sure, they're comedies and they involve improbable events and characters, but they don't have the distinctive literary structure that sets a farce apart.

That's why it's such a pleasure to see "Death at a Funeral" rolling into theaters. Made in Britain under the keen direction of Frank Oz, the film is an honest-to-goodness farce. And, yes, purists would agree.

As the title suggests, the film is set around a funeral, and that particular setting offers ample fodder for a script. The protagonist is Daniel (Mathew Macfadyen), the straight-laced son of the deceased. He and his wife, Jane (Keeley Hawes), still live in his parents' home in Britain, which is why he takes it upon himself to make sure the funeral goes off perfectly. Never mind that Jane is badgering him to get off his duff and rent them a place of their own.

Frankly, Daniel doesn't have the means to rent a flat because he paid for his father's service.

Already, the pieces of a great comedy are in place, but the supporting characters add even more spice. There's Uncle Alfie (Peter Vaughan), a crotchety, wheelchair-bound grump who doesn't like much of anything. There's Simon (Alan Tudyk), the boyfriend so nervous about seeing his fiancee's parents that he takes a sedative "» or at least he thinks it's a sedative. There's Troy (Kris Marshall), the provider of said sedative. And there's Peter (Peter Dinklage), a dwarf who claims to have had a surprisingly intimate relationship with the deceased.

When these characters come together it's a recipe for great comedy, and Oz and his actors know how to cook.

"Death at a Funeral" is not only one of the most consistently funny films to hit theaters this year, it allows the audience to feel smart while watching. That's because the gags -- as silly as they often are -- were built on wit and intelligence rather than the gross-out gags and over-the-top physical comedy that dominate Hollywood comedies.

That's not to say viewers need belong to MENSA to buy in. The jokes are simple and often goofy, but they are also clever and exceptionally well structured.